I don’t really buy that he’d run in 2012 anyway. He took a huge financial hit from the ’08 race and 2012 could turn out to be a largely sacrificial nomination anyway. For what it’s worth…

The surprising ascendancy of McCain’s eventual pick, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, and her popularity among some GOP conservatives have left Romney wondering whether he could wage a viable second campaign for the White House, according to friends and advisers…

“While (Palin) may not be popular with the winning majority that Barack Obama put together, she’s enormously popular with the losing minority that John McCain put together — and that pretty closely mirrors Republican primary voters,” said Rich Bond, former chairman of the Republican National Committee.

Charley Manning, a Massachusetts Republican operative who has worked as a Romney adviser, recently told a local radio interviewer: “I’d be surprised if Mitt ever ran again for president. I sure don’t think it was the best experience of his life.”

Pardon the obvious observation, but what happens is significantly dependent on how Obama’s first term turns out. If the economy is still in shambles or there’s another major crisis and The One’s money machine isn’t there, I predict a mad clamoring for the nod. If the economy approves and things are going pretty well, major players may put off their ambitions until 2012.